WHAT ARE YOU READING?

"Goals are visions and dreams with work clothes on," states Dave Ramsey in his book "EntreLeadership".  

Several months ago one of my friends posted in a social media network that he was in the process of laying aside the books he wanted to read in the next 12 months.  The point is, being intentional about what goes into the mind.

Eugene Peterson's paraphrase of Philippians 4:8 is "Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious-the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse."

So for several weeks I have been thinking on what to read in the next year and intentionally this morning I set aside a section on my book shelf, and placed these books there for the months ahead.  (Some of these books were gifts given to me for Christmas.)  I realize that during the year new books will come available and so I only put about 50% of the books aside that I plan to read.  The other 50% I read during the year will be books given to me, books loaned to me, or books I purchase.

Obviously we all have likes and dislikes in the book world but below is a few of the books, based on what I read this year, that I would recommend to be a good read.   You may want to read the reviews on these books to see if they are something that would benefit you.

"The Difference Maker", John Maxwell

"ReThink Your Life", Stan Toler

"Mississippi Wind", Dennis Patterson

"The 360 degree Leader", John Maxwell

"Ordering Your Private World," Gordon MacDonald

"The Church God Blesses", Jim Cymbala

"Radical Together" David Platt

"Purpose Driven Life" Rick Warren

"Simultaneous Principles" Frank Tunstell

"A Resilient Life", Gordan MacDonald

"The Purpose of Christmas", Rick Warren

"Unwrapping His Presence", by Chris Maxwell

My reading plan also should include reading the bible through and I love to start my day with a short "daily devotional" as well. 

Being realistic now I have to decide how much time a day I want to spend reading and then set aside that time each day for that purpose.  Since one of the most recent polls indicates that the average person will spend 10 hours watching television, movies, or on the Internet each day, a hour or two each day reading sounds reasonable to me but I know may not be realistic for everyone.  Circumstances in life sometimes will alter that plan but I encourage you to be intentional about what goes into your mind this coming year and set aside at least 30 minutes of your day to read the bible. 

Wishing you all a Happy New Year, one filled with joy and happiness as you walk through your journey with God.